Newlyweds
by alayneni
Summary: It was Ivy Town's weekly tea gathering for the women of Apple Lane. The hot topic for the day was the extremely handsome half of the newlyweds that arrived two days before. Olicity AU.
1. Newlyweds

**Newlyweds**

 **An:** I do not own Arrow.

 **Summary:** It was Ivy Town's weekly tea gathering for the women of Apple Lane. The hot topic for the day was the extremely handsome half of the newlyweds that arrived two days before. Olicity AU.

* * *

Mrs. Carol Granger took one last look at the area she would be hosting tea that day before she went to answer the bell. The first person to arrive would be the very elderly Mrs. Spritzer, it was always Mrs. Spritzer. She liked to arrive five minutes early and comment on the set up. If a single tea cup wasn't dead centre on its saucer she would make a comment. The older woman considered herself an expert on tea since she attended boarding school in England. She was so prim and proper no one in their group was allowed to call her by anything but Mrs. Spritzer.

Carol opened her large mahogany door to find Mrs. Spritzer on her front entrance dressed sharply with one of her famous hats and a clutch similar to Queen Elizabeth II perched on her arm. The woman smiled widely at her.

"How do you do?" Mrs. Spritzer asked and Carol had to restrain herself from rolling her eyes. The old woman was very fond of these archaic customs.

"How do you do?" Carol replied. She had gotten very confused the first time she responded to that particular question with an answer of 'I'm fine and you?'. The frown she had received from the older woman had confused her and made her feel very unwelcomed to their tea group. It was only when another lady at tea explained that the correct response that Mrs. Spritzer was looking for was 'How do you do" and that everyone got it wrong the first time that she felt a little better.

"Where will we be having tea today dear?" Mrs. Spritzer asked as she stepped into the house.

"The weather has been so lovely recently I decided we could have tea on the porch," Carol replied. She noticed the wrinkle that formed on the other woman's forehead indicating that she did not approve of that decision. What a surprise.

"Isn't it too hot for outdoors?" Mrs. Spritzer queried.

"Not at all. The weather is just right," Carol replied leading her through the house to the porch.

Mrs. Spritzer's eyes surveyed the area in great detail. She had the chairs arranged in a semi-circle around a coffee table that was already set up with the tea pot and five tea cups and saucers. She would be serving her appetizers on platters she would bring from the kitchen when everyone arrived.

"Please have a seat," Carol offered when the doorbell rang again. That would be the other three guests. As she was turning to leave she caught site of Mrs. Spritzer adjusting the tea cups. She honestly didn't' know why she even tried. It was an impossible standard to reach.

She returned to the front door and found Mrs. Lisa Carter, Mrs. Deedee Tucker and Mrs. Bernadette Davis all at the door. The customary greetings were said and she escorted them to the porch where she found Mrs. Spritzer fanning herself with a magazine that Carol had no idea where she got it from.

"It's hot," Mrs. Spritzer complained.

"You're always hot," Lisa countered taking a seat and reaching for the tea pot to pour the tea. Lisa never cared whose responsibility it was to serve the tea. She did as she pleased.

"It is kind of hot," Deedee agreed and she sat next to Lisa.

"It's called menopause," Lisa chided.

"I am not old enough to be in menopause," Deedee replied highly offended.

There were snorts among the group and Mrs. Granger took that opportunity to sneak into the kitchen and pick up a tray of canapes and a tray of deviled eggs. She returned and offered each lady an item before placing it on the coffee table and taking a seat. She caught the tail end of a conversation, "they are Queens."

"Queens?" Carol asked.

"The newlyweds that moved into the Fick's old house a few days ago," Bernadette told her.

"We have Queens in the neighbourhood," she asked aghast. "How did the home owners association allow that?"

"You dimwit," Lisa said, "Their last name is Queen."

"Oh!" Carol said understanding dawning in her eyes. "What about them?"

"The husband is hot. Carrie has already started circling but she's going to have a hard time with that one," Deedee said. Carrie was the thrice divorced woman that lived on the same lane as them. She was a sultry red head with a very good figure. She was known for stalking good looking men. She had slept with most of the husbands on the block, Deedee's husband included.

"Why?" Carol asked curiously. When Carrie set her sights on something it was hard to deny that woman.

"They're still clearly in the honeymoon phase. I would say they've been married for six months tops," Lisa said.

"Yeah," Deedee agreed, "He still looks at her as if the world revolves around her. We all know how long that lasts in a marriage," Deedee said bitterly. She and her second husband have only been married for two years though after Carrie that marriage might be ending soon.

Carol frowned, "But they have children? I swear I saw three kids running around in the front lawn yesterday after you borrowed the clipper to prune something in the garden you have never pruned before," Carol said to Deedee. She had been quite surprised when the blonde woman turned up begging to borrow some type of gardening tool because she had work to do in the garden.

"Oh that's where you got those clippers from," Mrs. Spritzer said. "You were holding them all wrong but I supposed you were paying more attention to the nice young man that was mowing his front lawn shirtless."

"Shirtless," Bernadette spluttered. "You saw him shirtless!"

Deedee's whole face turned red as she nodded enthusiastically.

"That's not fair," Lisa complained. "I only caught one glimpse of him throwing the little girl in the air and catching her."

"He throws the child in the air?" Carol asked horrified.

"Must be his own daughter from a previous relationship because his wife just stood there smiling at him. Not an ounce of concern on her face. Clearly still newlyweds," Lisa said.

"I'm hosting tea next week, perhaps I should invite Mrs. Queen to join us," Bernadette suggested.

"That sounds like a fantastic idea dear," Mrs. Spritzer said.

"Pity we can't invite Mr. Queen," Lisa commented.

The conversation soon turned away to the mysterious black car that parked in front of the widower, Mr. Grant's house three nights in the last week.

* * *

Felicity nervously walked over to the neighbour's house that was two doors down from her. Bernadette had stopped by the day before to invite her to tea. Apparently a few of the married women in the neighbourhood got together every week for tea. Felicity had politely accepted the invitation but then panicked as soon as she closed the door. She had never been to tea! What did one do at tea? She went straight to her husband's kitchen where he was working on a tray of cookies to ask him about tea. He had laughed at her for half an hour. She sulked away to her home office to do some research on proper tea etiquette.

Based on her research, Felicity chose a very modest outfit to wear and had Oliver bake some delicious cinnamon scones so she was not attending empty handed. She made sure her hair was presentable, Oliver had tried to muss it up for her when he kissed her senseless before she left, and ran out of the house platter in hand. She knocked on Bernadette's door and had to wait a few minutes. She knew she was five minutes late and the other ladies had probably all arrived on time.

The white door opened and Bernadette greeted her with a large smile.

"Felicity! You made it, come on in," she said smiling.

"Yes, a little late. I'm sorry. I brought some cinnamon scones to make up for the tardiness," she said offering her the platter that was already fully decorated.

Bernadette took the platter from her, "Thank you. It was very thoughtful of you," she said closing the door behind her.

Felicity followed her through her house to a closed in porch at the back of the house that overlooked a pool. The table was already set and there were four other women around the table. Felicity had been living there for over a week now and she had no idea who her neighbours were, well besides that redhead Carrie that kept coming over to try to talk to Oliver.

"Everyone, I would like to introduce you to our newest neighbour, Felicity," Bernadette said to the group. She placed the platter of scones of the table and took the clear wrap off of it.

"Hi," Felicity said giving an awkward wave.

"This is Lisa," Bernadette said, "She lives at the end of the lane, next to that house with the gaudy gate. Next to her is Carol. She lives across the road from me. Then Deedee who lives in the house opposite you."

"Oh the one that had the emergency over the weekend," Felicity said recalling the ambulance that had pulled up in front of the house.

"My son thought it was a good idea to lock his baby sister in the freezer. It was completely the nanny's fault," Deedee said.

That was apparently not any news to talk about because Bernadette went on to the last lady seated at the table that looked older than the Queen of England.

"This is Mrs. Spritzer," she said.

"How do you do," Mrs. Spritzer said to her.

Felicity grinned widely, "How do you do."

The old woman smiled brilliantly at her. "At last you've finally invited someone with a little bit of class to this. What boarding school did you go to?"

"Uh, I didn't go to a boarding school. I grew up in Las Vegas," Felicity said uncertainly.

"You're a Vegas girl," Deedee said cocking her head to right and studying Felicity's physical appearance.

"Not in the sense that you are applying that phrase," Felicity responded a bit miffed.

"Please have a seat," Bernadette said trying to smooth things over.

There was an open seat next to Mrs. Spritzer and the old woman was patting the chair next to her quite enthusiastically.

"Tell me more about yourself dear," Mrs. Spritzer pried when Felicity had taken a seat.

"I went to MIT, and graduated with my masters in cyber-security. I was approached by a lot of well established companies to work for them but I eventually chose to work at an IT start-up company in California. I learned a lot there and eventually I decided to start my own company. I've been running it for the last five years," she stated proudly.

Mrs. Spritzer nodded her head but then dived right back in with the questions, "You recently married?"

"No, Oliver and I have been married for ten years," Felicity said with a fond smile.

Their jaws all hit the ground.

"I'm sorry did you say ten months?" Lisa asked the confusion clear in her tone.

"No ten years. I met him at my first job. We knew each other for about two years before we started dating. We didn't date for that long before he proposed. We were married three months later," Felicity said with that giddy smile she got whenever she thought of the beginning of her relationship with Oliver.

"Ten years! Are you sure? I didn't think marriages lasted that long anymore," Deedee commented bitterly.

"I'm positive," Felicity said a bit creeped out by the women. "Oliver bought us this house here as a summer house for our tenth anniversary. I'm using it to test run some software I wrote to allow working mothers to work from home a few days a week. It's kind of unfair that while he and the kids are on vacation, I'm still at work."

The women ignored her comments about her job and focused on the length of time she had been married.

"It used to be that ten years of marriage was nothing. Roger and I made it to fifty years before he passed," Mrs. Spritzer said. "Now it's like a miracle if you make it to ten."

"Oliver and I will definitely be making it to fifty years," Felicity said confidently.

"Nope I'm not buying it," Lisa said. "There is no way the two of you have been married for ten years. Are you undercover spies or something."

"Excuse me?" Felicity asked.

"I saw the way that man looks at you. That is not the look of a man married for ten years!" Lisa insisted.

"And how is my husband supposed to behave?" Felicity asked hotly.

"He's supposed to have a beer belly, look at all the young girls that walk passed and forget to do his house chores. You're supposed to yell at him a lot too," Carol explained.

"Oliver and I do not have that type of marriage," Felicity explained. "We are true partners in everything we do."

"If it's true then you're an anomaly. Carrie has already set her sights on your husband. We'll see how long you last," Deedee said.

"My husband can't even remember Carrie's name and she's told him about ten times. To him, she's the annoying redhead next door that can't do anything for herself. Helpless women are a big turn off for him. Well unless it's me trying to reach something off the top shelf in the kitchen. Then he just enjoys watching me flail," Felicity said.

Lisa grabbed a scone off the platter and bit into it, "This is delicious," she said her eyes going wide.

"Really?" Deedee said reaching for one herself.

Mrs. Spritzer reached for her own as well.

"Where did you get them Bernadette?" Deedee asked.

"Felicity brought them," Bernadette said with a frown. Felicity's scones were upstaging her own food.

The women around the table turned to her, "And where did you buy them."

She fidgeted with her fingers a bit, "Uhm, Oliver made them. He's a professionally trained chef. He owns two restaurants now."

"Wow you must have a lot of competition to hold on to him," Lisa said bluntly.

Felicity laughed, "Oliver always says food may have been his first passion but I will always be his last. There will be no one after me."

"That's sweet that you believe that dear," Deedee said in a condescending tone. "My husband and I are having a cocktail function for our friends next week. He thinks it's a normal party but I'm going to serve him with the divorce papers in front of all of our friends," she explained in a cold tone. "Do you think your husband could cater?"

Felicity gave her a tight smile, "I will ask him and let you know but the response will probably be no. He's have a blast being home with me and the kids."

"Again, are you sure you've been married for ten years?" Lisa asked.

* * *

He heard the front door open and he anxiously made his way from the kitchen to the front of the house where his wife was. He looked into the study on his way there to ensure the kids were still busy with their summer activities.

"How was your tea?" Oliver asked as soon as he spotted her.

"Oliver some very strange women live in this neighbourhood!" she said very frazzled.

He frowned in confusion. He knew she might have a hard time adjusting to life here. She was brilliant and she shone brightest when she was around brilliant people. He was afraid that testing her software in a completely different town might stifle her creativity. He knew she was having trouble with the software not working the way she wanted it to work yet. Their eldest was only eight but like his mother he was a genius that liked computers. He liked going over the code that his mother wrote. In fact that was probably what he was doing now while his younger siblings took apart an old sewing machine that Felicity had brought for them to figure out how it worked. He knew his kids were very different to other kids but he would never stifle their creativity by forcing them to do something else.

"Felicity," he sighed taking her hands in his, "Not everyone can understand that brilliant mind of yours."

"No it's not that. They thought I was lying when I said we have been married for ten years," she explained.

Oliver frowned, "Why?"

"Well it took a while to pry out of them but eventually I discovered it's because we look at each other as if we just got married. We still have that newlywed glow," she explained to him wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his chest. He was pleased when she sighed contentedly.

"That's a good thing isn't it?" he asked wrapping his arms around her and rubbing her back.

"I suppose so," she admitted, "It's a good thing I didn't tell them I am pregnant. Then they might have accused me of using you for sex only."

Oliver cracked a smile, "I have no objection to being used for sex. In fact, the kids look fairly occupied I'm sure we could get away with a quickie."

"Mom!" their eight year old called.

"Dammit," Oliver said.

Felicity patted his chest, "Tonight," she said before walking off to join their children.

Oliver watched her walk away with a large goofy smile on his face. Movement on their front lawn caught his eye and he saw the annoying redhead making her way towards their front door through the window at the side of the door. It was a good thing he disconnected the doorbell while Felicity was away. If that woman kept trying to get his attention they would probably end up selling this house as soon as Felicity finalised her software. While he liked the area, nothing was more important to him than the happiness of his wife and children.

* * *

 **An:** Thanks for reading. This is the first of 8 one-shots I have to post.


	2. Bar-B-Que

**Chapter 2 – Bar-B-Que**

 **An:** I do not own Arrow. The much requested second chapter! This was written for missmeagan666, Valerienne, imusuallyobsessed, castlefan83, lila, Windripple at AO3 and the killer00, Element Siren at fanfiction. Thank you to all the guests that reviewed. If the system allowed me to reply to you I would have.

Warning: This chapter has tooth rotting fluff!

* * *

Oliver slowly drifted into consciousness. The first thing he noticed was the absence of his wife's body next to his. He sat up quickly in bed and looked around their bedroom frantically for her. The room was still very dark since it was 5:00am as Oliver always woke up at the same time every day. He was seconds from jumping out of bed and searching the house when his memory finally caught up with his instincts and reminded him that Felicity was in Starling City that day. He collapsed disappointed back in bed. He absolutely hated waking up alone. He was very accustomed to the wonderful sensation of waking up to his wife curled around him. She always sought out his warmth at night and he looked forward to finding her plastered against him in the mornings.

Felicity had a Board meeting at her company that day that she was required to attend in person. It was only because it was easier for Felicity to fly out the night before instead of taking an early morning flight to Starling City that Oliver hadn't protested that she was leaving him to suffer through the morning alone. His wife was not a morning person. If she had to wake up before her usual time she was an absolute terror to deal with. The Board meeting would have been an absolute disaster if she had tried to fly out in the morning.

Oliver took her to the airport the afternoon before and kissed her goodbye. The kids thought it was gross but Oliver didn't care. After watching her clear security to go up to her gate Oliver reluctantly left the airport with the kids. Sometimes he wondered how he managed in the early days of their marriage when she went away on business meetings and there were no kids to keep him busy but then he remembered that he had his best friends, Tommy and Digg, and the restaurant. They kept him grounded when Felicity wasn't there.

Oliver stared at the ceiling of his bedroom lost in thought. He pulled his wife's pillow towards him and inhaled the scent of her shampoo on the pillow. He knew she was in their home in Starling City and she wouldn't be up for another two hours at least. Being the early riser in the family, he handled all of the morning chores. Usually he would wake up, go for a run, then check on the kids and start getting them ready for school, then make breakfast and coffee. Coffee was always waiting for Felicity when she woke up. When the kids were babies, Felicity would pump one bottle of breast milk the night before and Oliver would handle the morning feeding and change of diaper so that she could sleep a little bit longer.

He had met women that thought Felicity was ducking her responsibilities as a mother in the morning but Oliver disagreed. The mornings were his time to bond with his children. He didn't get to see them at bedtime because he was always in one of his restaurants preparing his chef special for dinner. His children knew they got daddy time in the mornings and mummy time at nights. Sometimes he had no clue how they managed to juggle their careers, their children, their extended family and friends, and their relationship. In their ten years of marriage they had seen so many other relationships fail but they were still solid as a rock.

The last two weeks together in Ivy Town had been amazing. It had been years since they had been able to spend so much time together. His sister, Thea, had been right. They needed the vacation. At first, he had worried about his restaurants and them crashing and burning without his continued presence but he realised that he had put together a good team in both restaurants and he needed to trust them. Thea, managed the bar/restaurant called Verdant in the Glades and Tommy ran the high-end gourmet restaurant, Felicity, (Yes he named it after his wife) in the swanky upper class neighbourhood of the city.

At Verdant, the Executive Chef was a young chef he had taken under his wing and personally trained, Rory Regan. The pastry chef was also another young prodigy, Evelyn Sharpe. Together they gave Verdant a youthful modern menu that drew crowds of young people every night. His team there was always bursting with creative energy and several times he had to veto some of their more outrageous ideas. Despite that, he had been more worried about his other restaurant.

The Executive Chef at Felicity was a former thug named Rene Ramirez who was very prone to anger management issues. The Sous Chef was also a former thief, Roy Harper. The two of them and Tommy were like oil, water and gasoline but somehow the restaurant managed to function extremely well once each man stuck to what they did best. Tommy didn't understand a thing about food, Rene didn't understand a thing about management and Roy just hated taking orders. The beginning had been rough. Oliver had several sleepless nights trying to figure out what to do. He hated firing people and he really wanted to give Rene and Roy a chance. It had taken a long while for the team to trust each other but once they did, the result was beautiful. His only problem with the restaurant was that he couldn't keep a pastry chef. After one day in the kitchen they always quit. Evelyn had to prepare deserts to send across to that restaurant every day.

While Oliver was consumed in his thoughts the sun had slowly risen lighting up the room. He rolled over to look at the clock knowing he had missed the window to have his morning run. He had let Felicity's absence throw his entire routine into chaos. He was surprised to see it said 7:30am. He sprang from bed, splashed water on his face and ran downstairs. There was no doubt in his mind that his children were already awake and up to mischief downstairs.

He arrived in the kitchen to find them already seated around the table each with a glass of orange juice at different levels. They hadn't noticed him yet, each absorbed in their tablets which they weren't supposed to have at the kitchen table, and he took the opportunity to examine each one closely. They all appeared to be fine. He cautiously stepped further into the kitchen.

"Daddy!" his daughter, Emma, exclaimed. She was always the first one to see him.

"Are you feeling ok?" his eldest, Connor, asked, "Because we were debating if to call mom."

"Yeah if you didn't get down here soon, we were going to call her," William, his middle child, said.

"Sorry guys, I didn't realise it was so late. I'll get started on breakfast. Please put your tablets where they belong," he told them.

His kids groaned but they got up from their seats and trudged across to their play room to put them down. Oliver stared at them. They were quiet and orderly. There were no mechanical parts or devices on the breakfast table. That was unusual. Felicity was constantly reprimanding them about leaving their projects all over the house. They tried to raise their kids to be respectful and responsible but they were still kids and they knew that there would be times when things wouldn't go smoothly. Mornings were usually loud affairs. He got the distinct feeling he was missing something again but that wasn't unusual for him. He was raising here geniuses.

If his high school teachers saw him now they would be impressed. He used a dictionary and an encyclopaedia on a daily basis to answer his kids' questions. He didn't want them to get in the habit of thinking that their Daddy didn't know anything. He wanted his kids to grow up knowing they could come to him with anything. Often times when he did his research he felt his children understood the explanation a lot better than him.

He started preparing porridge for breakfast. It was a nice healthy breakfast. He opened the bin to toss the empty bag of rolled oats in when he noticed several chocolate wrappers in the bin. That's what they had been up to. He waited patiently for them to return and once they were settled on the table again, he started his investigation.

"Did you have anything for breakfast yet?" he asked calmly as he stirred the oats in the pot.

Both boys immediately pointed at their baby sister, "She made us!"

Their younger sister didn't even bat an eye. "We were hungry and we're not allowed to use the stove. what else were we supposed to eat?" she asked innocently.

His daughter looked so much like Felicity. It was hard to ever tell her she was wrong plus this was his fault. He had been the one to stay in bed sulking because Felicity wasn't there.

"You could have had granola bars instead of the chocolate bars. You are still going to have your porridge for breakfast, in fact, I think I'll serve plain porridge today," he said.

His children groaned and made disgusted faces while he stirred the pot. He pulled out a few containers and put all the extra ingredients he had been ready to use to spruce up the porridge away.

* * *

After his children struggled through their breakfast, Emma exclaimed that she was going to investiquire why the children next door kept trying to hit the low hanging fruit on their tree with stones when they always missed. Their method of fruit retrieval obviously was not working and it was time to try something else.

"That's not a word sweetheart," he said immediately as he and Connor cleared the table.

"It's not?" she asked confused scrunching her eyebrows together exactly like her mother.

"No," both of her older brothers agreed.

"Well it should be!" she stated firmly. "I need to investigate and enquire hence investiquire."

Oliver just nodded his head while his sons and daughter debated the creation of the new word. This would not be a conversation that required any of his wisdom. Before he knew it, he had finished the dishes and returned his kitchen to pristine condition. He turned his glance to his children who were sitting at the table waiting for some indication about what they were going to do that day.

"Let's do some garden work today. I'll mow the lawn and you all can rake the cut grass together into piles," he said. They had enjoyed working in the garden with him so far. He had a simple lawn mower that spat grass out the side. He didn't want anything fancy as he appreciated the physical labour.

"About that dad," Connor said. "I've been thinking about the most efficient pattern to mow the lawn since it's an unusual shape."

Oliver couldn't help the smile that formed on his face. His children were always looking for better ways to do things. William ran to the playroom and came back with pen and paper. They drew out the shape of the lawn and suggested a pattern in which he could mow the lawn and get all the grass cuttings into one pile so that the amount of raking required would be reduced. Oliver nodded his head as his children talked.

Armed with the new pattern, Oliver started in the back. This time he kept his shirt on. There was no Felicity home to get all hot and bothered and he did not want to rile up the neighbours. The kids were watching eagerly from the sides, his sons declaring that they would grow up to be strong like their daddy. It always filled him with warmth when he heard them say they wanted to be like him.

He was halfway through the front lawn, when a car he recognised stopped at the entrance to his driveway. The man behind the wheel, Glen, waved his hands to get his attention and called him towards the car. Oliver reluctantly let go of the lawn mower and the engine switched off. He had met Glen a few days ago as he was returning home from his morning run. The man was heading to work and had nearly run him over on the pavement as he reversed recklessly out of his driveway.

"Hello Oliver," Glen greeted him.

"Hello," Oliver replied with what he hoped was a friendly smile.

"A few of the guys on this block get together once a month for a bar-b-que, no wives allowed. Come and join us. It's in Mark's back yard this month." At Oliver's blank look he went on to give directions, "Third house from the end on the right, #17, tomorrow at 1:00pm. Bring whatever you want to cook. See you tomorrow," he said driving off without waiting for Oliver's answer.

Oliver stared dumbfounded for a few seconds before he caught site of the annoying redhead making her way down the pavement toward him. He quickly gathered up the kids and hid inside. He would sneak out later and finish the lawn.

* * *

Oliver was practically bouncing on his toes as he lit the candles in the kitchen. Felicity had landed and she was taking a cab home. The children were in bed asleep and he cooked a nice dinner for just the two of them to enjoy. It wasn't often that they got to have dinner by themselves. In Starling City usually Felicity and children would have dinner in either Verdant or Felicity, it depended where Oliver was for the night. On the rare occasion, if Felicity or one of the kids were sick and couldn't come to the restaurant, Oliver would send dinner home for them. The last time they had dinner to themselves was their tenth anniversary when Thea took the children for the night.

He heard the front door open and he sprinted to the front of the house. Her back was turned to him as she closed the door behind her. He gathered her up in his arms and kissed her passionately, making sure to pour all of his feelings into the kiss.

"What did I do to deserve this?" she asked a bit breathlessly when he pulled away from her.

"You chose to come home to me," Oliver replied lovingly.

"I'll always choose to come home to you," Felicity said rising on her toes to peck him softly on his lips.

His wife could have anyone she wanted and it amazed him that she continued to choose him. He surveyed her closely. The first trimester always left her tired and it showed on her face.

"I made dinner but if you're too tired," he offered.

Her entire face lit up, "I'm starving. I didn't get to swing by Verdant and have something to eat with Thea. It was ok at the time because I was still full from the exquisite meal that Rene and Tommy sent for the board meeting but I'm craving your cooking now," she explained.

His hand dropped to her lower back and he guided her to the kitchen. The candlelight cast soft shadows around the room making the room look a lot more romantic than it was.

"Oliver's its beautiful," Felicity said impressed with the effort Oliver had put in.

"Not as beautiful as you," Oliver replied.

It was cliché but he meant every word he said and he knew Felicity knew that. She turned and kissed him softly in thanks. He could see she was growing more tired as she ate, her eyes slowly dropping closed after every other bite. As soon as she was finished he told her to head upstairs he'll clean up. Usually he cooked and she cleaned but he could do the extra work tonight.

Twenty minutes later he entered their bedroom to find her sound asleep hugging his pillow for dear life. Oliver chuckled softly before pulling the covers back and sliding into bed with her. He kissed her on her temple and her hands automatically let go of his pillow and pulled him towards her. She snuggled up against him and sighed happily.

* * *

Oliver woke up at his usual 5:00am to the weight of his wife on top of him. A large smile pulled across his face. That was how he was supposed to wake up. He was fairly sure if he tried to get out of bed he would wake her up so he decided to stay in bed and soon drifted off to sleep again.

"Mummy! Mummy! Mummy!" the boys cried as they invaded their bedroom. They were excited she was back but Oliver didn't like them just barging in. They were supposed to respect that mommy and daddy had adult time together.

"We made you something yesterday!" William said.

"Yes you have to come and see it," Connor said.

"I will," she assured them with a large smile.

"Where is Emma?" Oliver asked.

"She went for juice in the kitchen," William answered.

Oliver pursed his lips, if his daughter went for chocolate again, there would be trouble. While Felicity attended to the boys he made his way to the kitchen and found Emma sitting innocently at the kitchen table with a glass of orange juice in front of her. He tickled her good morning and then set about making breakfast checking the bin first to make sure there were no chocolate wrappers in the bin. When the bin turned up empty Oliver opened the cupboard and did a quick count of what was supposed to be left. There was one missing.

"Emma, is there something you want to tell me?" he asked in a stern voice.

"I was hungry," she whined admitting the truth right away.

He held his hand out and Emma jumped off the seat and came towards him. She pulled the chocolate wrapper from inside her pyjamas and handed it to him.

"You know better Emma. Porridge for breakfast for you. The rest of us will have omelettes," he explained to her.

She stomped her foot in frustration, "That's not fair."

"Rules are rules Emma," he said pulling out a tray of eggs from the fridge. He noticed the steaks and ribs he had on one of the shelves marinating and he remembered the bar-b-que. He needed to tell Felicity about it. As if summoned, his wife and the boys entered the kitchen.

"Felicity," he said as he balanced all the ingredients in his hand and kicked the fridge door shut with his foot.

"Hmmm," she asked looking at some sort of mechanical device she had in her hands.

"I got invited to a guy's bar-b-que at 1:00pm today," he told her.

"Oh that's great. Have fun. We'll certainly be having fun right kids?" Felicity asked them.

"Yes," they said in unison.

"And don't worry about rushing back for dinner, I got it covered," Felicity said.

He must have made a horrified sound because Felicity started glaring at him, "I'm not going to touch your kitchen, I'll order pizza." It was a known fact that Felicity couldn't even boil water without setting off the fire alarm.

* * *

At five minutes to one o'clock Oliver kissed Felicity goodbye before heading down the road with a cooler full of food and another cooler with beer. When he came to #17, he walked up to the front door and rang the bell. He waited a few minutes before Glen's head appeared at the side of the house.

"Hey Oliver, I thought it was you. You're lucky someone was inside or we wouldn't have realised you were in front," Glen said waving for him to follow him down the side of the house.

He followed Glen along a narrow part to the back where he found with about fifteen guys gathered in small groups around three grills. The food on the grill was almost cooked which was kind of strange if they were starting at one.

"I thought you said this started at one?" Oliver questioned Glen.

"I did?" Glen questioned, "I meant twelve. It's no big deal anyway everyone comes at least half an hour late. Maybe that's why I told you one," Glen said thinking it over.

Glen whistled loudly to get the crowd's attention. "Everyone this is Oliver," Glen introduced.

"Hey," they said before going back to their previous conversations.

Oliver rolled his cooler over to the closest grill which had burgers and sausages on it. A short blond guy was standing in front of it was a spatula in hand.

"What you got in there?" he asked curiously pointing the spatula at the cooler.

"Steaks and ribs," Oliver said.

"Great!" he said before turning around to the group that was standing closest to the stairs that lead into the house.

"Hey Jeff, where are the buns for the burgers?" the guy hollered.

"Buns?" Jeff questioned dumbly.

"Yeah buns, how did you plan on us eating it?" the short guy asked.

Jeff shrugged. "I usually just do the burgers. Carol does everything else."

"Married men. We do this once a month, you'd think by now they would remember the buns. I'm Mark by the way," he said to Oliver.

"Nice to meet you," Oliver said shaking his hand. "This is your house?"

"Technically it's my parents but they went away on a cruise so I decided to host this month's get together," Mark explained.

"I got booze!" a guy who had just arrived with a large cooler declared loudly.

"I thought Deedee kick you out?" Glen asked.

Oliver had heard the story of Deedee and her husband from Felicity. It was nice to connect a few dots.

"She tried to but I'm fighting her for the house," he explained.

"Isn't that Deedee's liquor?" another guy asked when he raised the cover on the cooler.

"Yeah drink up!" he declared happily.

Oliver hoped he and Felicity never ended up hating each other the way those two clearly did.

Mark grabbed a plate and loaded it up with the burgers and sausages.

"They are just going to have to eat it like this. The grill is all yours. Go ahead and cook up a storm," Mark said picking up the plate and moving it over to the table that held the drinks and food.

Oliver checked the heat on the grill and adjusted it to what he preferred for his steaks. In the background he was listening to the conversation around him.

" _Hey who's the new guy?"_

" _That's Oliver. He lives just up the street."_

" _His wife is the pixie blonde with the great ass."_

" _Oh I've been meaning to talk to him!"_

Oliver felt a presence next to him as he took the steaks out of the cooler and put them on the grill.

"Hello," Oliver said.

"Hi, I'm Billy. You're married to that hot blonde right?" he asked.

"I am married to a very beautiful woman," Oliver confirmed in a cool tone not yet understanding where the conversation was going.

"Are you interested in swapping for the night? You can have my girlfriend and I'll take your wife off your hands?" Billy said jovially.

Oliver stared at him. He had to be joking. When the rest of Billy's group stared at him waiting for a response he realised that he wasn't.

"No," Oliver said firmly. "I **do not** and **will not ever** share my wife."

"Told you he didn't look like a swinger," Mark said and another man passed him a $100.00 bill.

"Dammit, I was looking forward to the next party," another man said.

Oliver scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion. Were these men seriously contemplating sleeping with his wife? That was not happening!

"We'll check back in a few months. After a year or two of marriage you'll want a newer model," the man who had lost the bet said to Oliver.

"Felicity and I have been married for ten years and I don't want anyone else," Oliver said through gritted teeth.

The group reacted with surprise and Oliver turned back to the grill and decided to focus on what he did best, cooking, lest he attack someone with the spatula in his hand. Oliver couldn't believe how easily these men gave up on their partners. He knew full well what it was like to have a young attractive girl flirt with you and stroke your ego. He felt that tug of attraction and the lust but he was not throwing away what he built with Felicity for some short pleasurable tryst in someone else's bed. There was no way it would be worth it. He and Felicity worked hard to build the life they had. Even after ten years together, he was still very much in love with her. It wasn't all easy. They had their good times and their bad times but they survived. He knew what he wanted in life and that was Felicity and their life together.

An hour later Oliver was raking in the compliments about his steaks with a new group of guys. Several declared that it was the best steak they had ever had and he was permanently invited to the monthly bar-b-que. The ribs were on the grill when he saw the redhead join them.

"Hello boys, I heard you guys were having a bar-b-que," she said in a sultry tone.

"Carrie," several of the men welcomed while a few moved to the other side of the yard far away from her.

"Jake, it's good to see you. I heard Deedee's been treating you so bad. I'm sure I can help de-stress you," she purred.

"Hey Carrie, we're having a party Friday night. Make sure and come," the swinger guy said.

She smiled widely at swinger guy before she caught sight of Oliver standing by the grill. She started walking towards him.

"Stop right there," he said holding out the long tongues in front of him. His other hand was reaching for the spatula just in case.

"I don't bite," she purred, "Unless you want me too. Right fellas?" she asked and some of the guys around him laughed.

"I am a happily married man," Oliver insisted.

"It always starts out that way, but after a year or two it's not that happy anymore," the redhead said. "I guarantee by your first anniversary, the cracks in the façade will start to appear."

A few of the men in the group around him bobbed their heads in agreement.

"Had my first divorce at two years," one man confirmed.

"A year and a half," another one added.

"Six months," a third guy stated.

"I made it three years before she cheated on me," Carl the accountant admitted. Oliver had liked Carl. He was a good guy and seemed like the only loyal one there.

"Well I've been married for 10 years," Oliver said proudly, "And even though I didn't think it possible then, I'm more in love with my wife now than the day we got married. I'm not going to lie, it hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows. I've spent a fair share of my nights sleeping on the couch, I've heard my wife's loud voice way too many times and there were days I thought we wouldn't make it but we always chose each other and we will continue to choose each other so I'm going to make things crystal clear, my wife and I aren't interested in any of your offers and if I find any of you near her, I'll make you regret the day you were born," he said turning back to the grill to flip the ribs over.

* * *

Oliver opened his front door to hear his favourite sounds in the world, his wife and children laughing. He followed the sound to the kitchen where there were four pizza boxes on the island. His wife and children were all seated around the table with slices of pizza on their plates.

He liked moments where he got to stand and watch them interact without them realising he was there. All too soon the moment was broken when Emma noticed him, "Daddy's home!" she declared loudly.

Felicity turned to look at him with a mischievous smile, "Want to join us?"

"Definitely," Oliver said with a large grin on his face.

Even though he had eaten at the bar-b-que there was always room to eat with his family. He pulled a plate from the cabinet and grabbed one slice of the mushroom pizza, his wife's favourite. He glanced across at his wife's plate to see she had three slices on it. Usually he would needle her about eating healthy, especially when she was pregnant but today he was willing to let it go in favour of enjoying the moment with his family.

"Someone's hungry," he teased. "Four boxes is a bit much."

"Really? I have four growing children to feed!" Felicity said defending herself.

He bent over and kissed her on the lips before sitting in the open chair next to her.

"Ew!" his children exclaimed.

In a few years they won't be thinking of kissing like that but he would cross that bridge when he got there. For now they would have to put up with his public displays of affection.

Later that night as they were both lying in bed exhausted from a very passionate encounter Oliver decided to broach the topic of Ivy Town.

"I think you were right hon," he admitted his hand rubbing circles on her bare back. "As soon as you finish your programme we should head back home."

"Are you sure? I thought you liked it here," Felicity asked with concern.

"I like this kitchen, this house, being home with you and the kids but I don't want to become as jaded as our neighbours. Some young little punk wanted to borrow you for a night with him!"

"Really?" Felicity asked intrigued.

"Felicity," Oliver said in a voice that indicated he wasn't pleased with her response.

"Sorry, I'm not considering it. You know you're the only one I want but it's really flattering to know that after three children I still look hot!" Felicity said proudly.

"Of course you're hot, why do you think I always keep a baseball bat in the car? It's to beat all those punks away," Oliver told her.

"Oh I thought that was for me to chase the harpies away from you!"

* * *

Two weeks later the moving van arrived and Oliver and two movers worked on loading the truck while Felicity stood off to the side with her packing list, checking off as each box was packed. A few neighbours slowed down as they drove past but no one stopped. It was only when the last box was placed in the truck that Bernadette and her husband, Bob, appeared to enquire what was going on.

"I finished the programme. We're moving back home," she answered first before she placed her hand over her growing bump, "Plus we want this new baby to be born in Star City."

Bob's and Bernadette's faces fell open in shock. Oliver pulled her against him and wrapped his arms around her.

"It was nice meeting you but the big city calls!" he said happily.

"Are you selling?" Bernadette asked still digesting the news.

"Oh no. Oliver gave this house to me as our tenth anniversary gift. I can't bear to part with it so quickly. My mom is retiring and I offered her the house. She'll move in next week! Though she'll probably be back and forth quite a bit. She loves her grandkids," Felicity explained.

Oliver was quite sure this little town was not prepared for Donna Smoak.

"Don't worry you'll see us again," Oliver said. "We're going to have a big party here for our eleventh anniversary. Apparently once you pass five it's a rarity so we have decided to celebrate big each year!"

The moving truck started and pulled away leaving Bob and Bernadette standing awkwardly there with them. The kids started calling from inside and it was the perfect excuse for both couples to part ways. Felicity and Oliver walked back inside holding hands like lovesick teenagers and Oliver decided he wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

 **An:** Thanks for reading.


	3. Glitter

**Chapter 3 - Glitter**

 **An:** I do not own Arrow. Thanks to my beta missmeagan666 at Ao3 for editing this chapter.

* * *

The sun was shining bright and the weather was perfect as far as Donna Smoak was concerned. She dressed in her tight yellow mini dress, with matching six inch heels. Armed with her glitter bomb invitations to her daughter's 11th wedding anniversary party, she headed out into her neighbourhood. With Felicity busy with the new baby, Donna was allowed to arrange the party and Donna had decided to invite the entire neighbourhood.

She proudly walked along the pavement to the end of her street where she would start. It was Sunday afternoon and everyone was home which meant she would be able to personally deliver the invitations to each of her neighbours. The party was to be held in two weekends and she was absolutely buzzing with excitement. Felicity was finally letting her plan a party. Her daughter never let her take the lead on parties and most of the time Felicity always threw her great ideas out the window.

She stepped up to the first door and rang the bell. She waited impatiently for Mr. Cutter to open the door. He was a nice widower but he wasn't her type. He liked to stay home and play board games whereas Donna liked to out and experience life. He just wasn't up to her speed and today was another example of that. She started to tap her foot impatiently as she waited for Mr. Cutter. She knew he wasn't deaf so he definitely heard the doorbell; he was just taking his time to answer the door. She was tempted to ring the bell again but she knew that annoyed him.

Finally the door opened and Donna shoved the invitation into his hands, "You're invited to Felicity's 11th wedding anniversary. Open the card," she ordered.

Mr. Cutter looked stunned to see her. "What is this he asked confused?"

Donna sighed, "An invitation to a party," she said much slower this time.

"Oh," he said. "When is it?"

"All the details are on the invitation," Donna said pointing at the envelope in his hand. "Just open it."

Mr. Cutter slowly transferred the envelope from one hand to another. He turned it around and stared at it. "Do you have a letter opener?" he asked.

Donna frowned, "No, just tear the top and open it."

"No, I can't do that. I'll open it in my office with my letter opener," he told her.

Donna wanted to scream in frustration. She really wanted to see him open the envelope.

"Ok," she relented. "I'll see you at the party."

She left his house and moved over to the next neighbour. They were new having moved in two days ago and this was the perfect opportunity to introduce herself. She made sure her dress was straight and her hair was neat and she rang the doorbell. She heard children screaming loudly on the other side of the door and the sound of things breaking before the door opened. A dishevelled woman with a toddler on her hip answered the door.

"Hi, I'm Donna Smoak," she introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm sorry but I'm really busy right now," she said. Just then two boys rolled passed them on skateboards. The woman turned and shouted, "Justin, Kurt, I told you not to skateboard in the house!" The woman turned back to her, "What was it you wanted?"

Donna held out her hand with the invitation, "It's my daughter's 11th wedding anniversary."

"Poor girl," the woman said sardonically taking the envelope from her. "I kicked my good for nothing husband to the curb." There was a sudden loud crash and the woman screamed at the boys again. She turned away from the door and walked back into the house to see what they had done.

Donna politely put her hand on the door, reached around and engaged the bottom lock and pulled it closed. That mother clearly had her hands full. She moved on to the next neighbour and then the next and the next. Everyone just took the envelope and said they would open it later. She hadn't been able to convince one person to open it in front of her.

She arrived at Carrie's house and she was positive that Carrie would open the invitation right away. She walked up to her front door and heard noises that weren't fit for any underage ears. Was she doing it against her front door? Donna debated whether she should ring the bell or not and she decided to be wicked and ring the bell. The noises didn't stop and Donna rang the bell again. After Carrie continued to ignore her, Donna decided to call out, "I can hear you on the other side of the door and that sounds like Mr. Granger!"

The noises came to an abrupt halt. So her guess was correct as well as Mrs. Granger's intuition. Her husband had fallen prey to Carrie's advances.

The door opened a few minutes later and Carrie stood there perfectly put together. The woman was very good at covering her tracks.

"Donna what a surprise!" she declared happily.

"I'm sure it was a surprise," Donna said with a cunning smile. "It's a good thing I wasn't Carol. She wouldn't appreciate what you're doing with her husband."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Carrie said brushing the accusation aside. "I assume you had a reason to ring by doorbell."

"Yes, I'm hosting an 11th wedding anniversary party for my daughter," Donna said.

"Oh Oliver!" Carrie exclaimed excitedly grabbing the envelope from her and tearing it open. Glitter burst forth as she pulled the invitation out but she paid no mind to that.

Donna narrowed her eyes, "It's a party to celebrate the fact that Felicity and Oliver have been faithfully _**married**_ to each other for eleven years." Donna didn't even know why she bothered to emphasise married. Carrie never took that on, in fact it probably motivated her. She liked challenges.

"In two weeks, I'll definitely be there Donna," Carrie said with a sparkle in her eye.

"Carrie let me make this perfectly clear to you. Oliver is not on the menu and if I see you do more than say hello to him, I will throw you out of my house. My boyfriend is a cop and if I tell him you're causing a disturbance he will throw you in jail," Donna said seriously but Carrie hadn't reacted at all. It was as if she hadn't heard her.

"I'll be seeing you Donna, I need to go find a dress," Carrie said closing the door on her.

Donna fumed, perhaps she shouldn't have invited all her neighbours.

* * *

Donna was playing cat and mouse with airport security in the arrival area outside the airport. Thea was flying in ahead of Felicity and Oliver to help with the party prep and she was bringing the custom made napkins that were labelled with the anniversary date. Donna had no time to park and wait for Thea. Getting in the parking lot took five minutes and getting out, took about twenty minutes. They had a tight schedule today so she decided to circle the airport and try to get away with waiting at the curb side. Security wasn't having it though. They kept approaching her to move.

Finally, Donna finally saw her emerge and she honked her horn to draw Thea's attention to her. The younger Queen scurried over to her with her large suitcase and they loaded it in the car under the careful supervision of the security officer. Once that was done, they jumped in the car and headed off.

Their first stop was at the company she hired to provide bar services for the night. They were preparing a signature cocktail for the event that would be served in glasses engraved with the anniversary information. Donna and Thea were going to sample the cocktail and give their stamp of approval. They didn't like the first version and both rejected it. The second was too sweet for Thea and the third to bitter for Donna. They were able to agree on the fourth version. Donna asked to see the glasses and once she was satisfied they were up to par, they headed out to the next destination, the caterers.

"Maybe we should have eaten first then drank?" Thea asked in the car.

"Nonsense, drinks before and after! The caterer has promised me a fantastic menu plus an excellent desert wine to finish it off with," Donna said excitedly.

"It better be good or we'll have to put up with Oliver commenting the entire night about how much better he could have prepared the food," Thea said with a sigh.

"It will be good. I did my research," Donna said.

The food was good and the desert wine even better! They made slight adjustments to the menu and then they were off to see the DJ to review his play list. Donna wanted only romantic music. Thea tried to throw in a few up beat dance songs but Donna refused.

After the DJ, they went to a craft store to buy the remaining items she needed to complete the decorations for the party.

* * *

The flight out had been chaotic. Travelling with three children and a baby was very difficult, even with her well behaved children. She hated clearing airport security. She just had so many bags and so many tech devices that needed to be taken out of their cases. With the exception of Andrea, their new addition, all of her children had tablets. Plus there were their phones and Felicity's tablet. The stroller needed to be scanned as well. Then they needed to take off their shoes, their jackets, their hats, Oliver's belt and any other piece of garment security deemed necessary of being scanned. Clearing security without a problem seemed like a lofty goal. This time, Emma forgot her shoes and Connor left his tablet in the bin. Oliver had to go back for them.

They picked up their rental car and headed out to the house. Felicity's mom was blowing up her phone with messages about when they were arriving and Felicity chose to ignore it. She was stressed enough as it was. They arrived at the house and found several vans parked in front. The bartenders and caterers were setting up their areas for the night.

They walked right through the open front door of the house, Connor, William and Emma running off in search of their grandmother and aunt leaving Felicity with Andrea in her arms. Felicity was stunned. All of the furniture had been moved. The caterer had his tables inside and it looked like the bar was outside. There were streamers full of glitter hung all over and a massive painting on the wall of her and Oliver in a heart with 11 years written in glitter below it. The floor also seemed to be covered in glitter.

"Your mom certainly went all out," Oliver said.

"Don't you think this a bit too much glitter?" Felicity asked.

"Felicity," Oliver said warningly. "You agreed to let your mom do what she wanted. Let her have this moment."

"Remind me why I did that?" Felicity asked.

"Because she was on the verge of tears, on her knees, begging you to let her do this for you," he reminded her.

"Right," Felicity said with pursed lips. "She manipulated me into this."

"Felicity!" Oliver said in a disapproving tone.

Felicity crossed her hands across her chest, "I still think she went overboard on the glitter."

"Behave," Oliver said, "I'll go get the bags from the car and put them upstairs. Go and let Donna know we're here."

"Oh she already knows," Felicity said pointing to her mom running in from outside.

"Felicity!" she screeched.

Felicity had just enough time to pass Andrea off to Oliver before Donna pulled her into a tight hug.

"Breathe," Felicity coughed out, "I need to breathe."

"Oh right sorry darling," Donna apologised before turning to Oliver and hugging him. "How was the flight? I messaged you to let me know when you landed."

"It was hectic," Oliver said passing Andrea back to Felicity. He needed to start bringing in the suitcases.

Donna looped her arm through Felicity's free one, "Come and see the fountain I put in. The kids just love it."

Oliver patted Felicity reassuringly on the back before she was dragged off by her mother.

* * *

Oliver was the first one dressed and ready for the party. That wasn't surprising at all. The next ones down were William and Connor in the three piece suits that Donna bought for them. All of the service personnel had arrived and were fully set up. Oliver couldn't stop himself from inspecting the caterer's items. He tried each one to make sure they met with his approval. There were one or two that could use some improvement but it was acceptable for the night. Of course had this party been held at Verdant, he could have done a much better job.

Thea and Emma were the next ones down.

"Daddy do you like my dress?" Emma said twirling around for him. Donna had bought a replicate of Elsa's dress from Frozen for Emma to wear.

"Yes you look lovely," Oliver said bending down and kissing her cheek.

"And me?" Thea asked spinning in her tight black cocktail dress with a plunging back.

"Have way too much skin exposed," Olive grumbled.

Thea punched him lightly in the arm. The doorbell rang signalling the arrival of the first guest.

"Time to start this party," Thea said heading off to the front door.

Oliver looked at his daughter, "Your brother's are in the back by the fountain. I believe they are trying to figure out how it works."

"Yeah, we've been debating that for awhile. I still say I'm right," Emma said heading off to the back.

Oliver recognised the first arrival as Mrs. Spritzer of course she would be on time. Donna was next down the stairs dressed in a dark dress with feathers and a lot of glitter. H.e momentarily got distracted by Donna and Mrs. Spritzer debating the glitter. When he next looked up his beautiful wife was halfway down the stairs. It amazed him that even after 11 years of marriage and four children she could still take his breath away.

She was dressed in a tight, short gold dress and even though it was short, the dress still had a slit on the left side. Felicity didn't look like the mother of four children or someone who had given birth a few months ago. In fact she didn't look a day over 21. He was sure she would get carded at any club she went to. What he liked the most was that Felicity left her hair out to fall over her shoulders. These days she always had it in the ponytail or messy bun.

"You look beautiful," Oliver whispered to her when she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"As do you," she said, "Or is it handsome. I should say you look handsome right? Not beautiful..."

Oliver cut her off with a quick kiss to the lips before pulling away and pulling her to his side, his hand settling on her opposite hip.

"Oliver!" a high pitched voice said from the doorway. Carrie had arrived in a short blood red dress that only seemed to cover her bust and her lower region. There were large cut outs in the dress to display her taught abs and back. Felicity wondered how the dress stayed up.

"Right now that you've said hello to Oliver, the bar is in the back," Donna instructed.

"But we haven't caught up yet?" Carrie said.

"That's all the catching up you need to do," Donna said. "Now scoot along. Other guests are coming."

Felicity sighed.

"What's wrong?" Oliver asked his hand starting to rub circles on her hip to comfort her.

"We're getting to that age where I need to beat the younger girls off with a baseball bat," Felicity sulked.

Oliver laughed. "Let me put this in a language you can understand. My eyes are programmed to only see you, my skin is programmed to only feel your touch, my nose only smells your scent and my lips only taste yours. My body will reject anything that isn't Felicity. You can beat them off with the baseball bat if you like. I'm sure I will enjoy the show, but I will always be yours and yours alone!"

Felicity practically climbed him to give him a searing kiss. "If we weren't here, I would show you just how much those words mean to me."

"Rain check?" Oliver asked with a roguish grin.

The rest of the night was spent catching up with old neighbours and celebrating their love for each other.

* * *

 **An:** Thanks for reading.


End file.
